Perfect Poolside Cocktail Hour: Partnership with Home Centric/Bealls Outlet

You guys KNOW that Bealls Outlet is one of my fave places to find reasonable home decor. So when they reached out to collab on a spring project I jumped at the chance! They are actually sister brands with Home Centric if you hear me call it that in this post!

I decided to put together a perfect poolside cocktail hour, complete with my fave snack - a charcuterie board, and a yummy low-carb mojito cocktail. I found almost all of these boho and gold goodies at Home Centric which just goes to show you, you don’t have to spend a fortune to pull together a super cute and unique look!

The garden section is pretty stocked right now at the store! I love this funky head planter. Doesn’t the fern go pretty perfectly in there as his crazy hair?

I wanted to serve a tropical type of drink but not a margarita, so I opted for a mojito. The problem with so many delicious mixed cocktails is how much sugar they contain! I decided to go for a low carb option and it was refreshing and delish! Here’s the mix for one serving!

Low Carb Mojito
+Muddled Mint
+1 .5 oz rum
+2 oz club soda
+2 oz Diet 7 Up
+1/2 oz lime juice

The charcuterie board I found at Home Centric is actually a piece of decorative wall art! I thought it had a boho vibe and would look cute as a snack board. Throwing together a charcuterie board is easier than you think. This is my go-to shopping list for a super easy charcuterie.

Easy Charcuterie
+Three blocks of cheese
+One type of salami or sopressata
+Two types of crackers or toast
+Fig preserves or seeded mustard
+Little bowl of olives or nuts
+Fresh fruit

Back-to-School Weekly Meal Planner

Can you believe it? After five and a half months, the kids are back to school! Fingers crossed all stay healthy and the schools stay open.

One of the things on my to-do list last week was updating the kids’ lunchbox situations. I’ve had reusable containers for awhile but I kept seeing these bento boxes and kinda had to have them. At first I ordered the smaller size box but the compartments weren’t big enough, so I swapped them out for the “Tapas” size. The clear divider section comes out for easy cleaning as well. Naturally, I headed over to Pinterest to do some bento box lunch planning. I got a little inspired by seeing so many options! To keep things simple, in the past I typically stuck to these lunch packing guidelines and I’ll continue to do so for this year too.

• Protein / Cheese

• Fruit

• Veggie

• Something crunchy

• Something sweet

I pick two options of each for the week and make up different combinations to mix it up. Because of Amelia’s Type 1 Diabetes I also have to count carbs, so I try to stick between 30-40 grams of carbs at lunch. For example, here’s a week of lunches:

• Monday: Turkey, provolone, mayo & lettuce pinwheels (no wrap, just those ingredients), berries, carrot slices, pretzels, yogurt raisins.

• Tuesday: Ham & cheese square skewers, watermelon, pickles, cheez-its, M&M’s.

• Wednesday: 1/2 turkey sandwich, berries, pickles, pretzels, oreo thins.

• Thursday: Ham & cheese pinwheels, watermelon, carrots, cheez-its, yogurt raisins.

• Friday: 1/2 ham sandwich, berries, pickles, cheez-its, M&M’s.

I find that if I try to have TOO much variety per week, I don’t use everything up and stuff goes bad. This system seems to work and I never get complaints!

I also grabbed new lunchboxes for the girls at Target. They are perfect size for the bento boxes. They are also like a giant gel ice pack, so you put the entire lunchbox in the freezer and it helps keep the contents cool all day long! I got them the same design because #1, it’s all they had and #2, it’s just easier that way haha.

In the midst of all this planning I whipped up a Weekly Meal Planner graphic to try to stay organized! I tried looking for one online but I didn’t need the extra note sections or snack sections and I just like things that are clean and simple! If you’d like to download it, click below! What other types of printables would you guys be interested in?

And just because back-to-school pics make me smile so much, I’ll share some of ours with you! :)

Family Recipe Dinner

I’m so excited! 😍 My Grandma Judy is an amazing cook, look at all the recipes in that box, and she wanted me to have them! I started scouring that box right away and picked out a few recipes to make and invited my family over for a Grandma Judy dinner!

The Menu

Olive Cheese Ball
Chicken & Crab Elegante
Vidalia Casserole
Mimi’s Salad

Olive Cheese Ball
8 oz crumbled blue cheese
16 oz cream cheese
1/4 c. butter
1 can black olives, chopped
fresh chives
chopped walnuts on outside

If you don’t like blue cheese, this probably won’t be your favorite appetizer, but I loved it! Since it was mixed with cream cheese it took the “bite” out of it and well, olives are my favorite so I thought it was just delish. I also served carrots and celery with it which was a match made in heaven, blue cheese and celery anyone?

Chicken & Crab Elegante
3-4 Cooked Chicken Breasts
Drain 1 can crab meat, set aside
Saute: 1/2 c. sliced mushrooms, 1/4 c. chopped onion in 3T butter
Blend in: 3T flour, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/8 tsp white pepper
Gradually add 1.5 c. chicken broth & 1/2 c. white wine, cook until thick.
Add 2 beaten egg yolks to broth and cook for 2 minutes.
Remove from heat, add bag of cooked frozen peas and crab meat
Pour over chicken in casserole dish, top with parmesan cheese.
Bake at 325 for 20 minutes.

I love making casseroles when I have guests because I can do a lot of the prep work before they arrive and just cook the thing when it’s almost time for dinner. This one however, is a little more work I guess hence the word, “elegante” in the title. It was creamy and delicious, I loved the peas in it! The crab added a flavor but wasn’t overpowering, it just made it taste a little more fancy!

Vidalia Casserole
4-5 Vidalia or sweet onions sliced 1/4” thick
Saute onions in 1/4 c. butter until tender.
Mix in sour cream, approx 1 cup and pour in casserole dish.
Top with parmesan cheese and crushed butter crackers.
Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes.

My Mom and Aunt have made this dish that I can remember, so it wasn’t completely new to me, but it’s a goodie. It’s a nice alternative to potatoes. The sweet onions are tasty and the butter crackers with parmesan add a yummy crunchy topping. Again, dishes that can be made a little ahead are my favorite. this is a crowd fave too.

Do you have any family recipes that you love? I’m excited to have my Grandma Judy’s collection and pass it down to my daughters one day too!

Joanna Gaines' Shortbread Cookies

This past Tuesday was National Cookie Day! I recently made this recipe so I thought I would share. I love cookies, like I could live off of cookies. I also love Joanna Gaines’ cookbook “Magnolia Table.” Everything I’ve tried out of it is delicious, including these cookies!

A few notes, it’s important to make sure these are baked through. I took them out and tried one and they were pretty doughy, so I popped them back in. I had to bake them for significantly longer than the recipe instructed.

These are a substantial cookie. It’s difficult (but not impossible) to eat more than one of these at a time. They would look so pretty on a plate of Christmas cookies too, I may make them again during my holiday baking day! I’m adding the recipe below, I simplied the description just a little so it’s not exactly what you see in her book. If you DON’T have her book yet, GET IT! You won’t be disappointed. HERE is a link!

CHOCOLATE-DIPPED SHORTBREAD COOKIES BY JOANNA GAINES

Ingredients - Cookies

• 3 cups flour

• 1 cup sugar

• 1/4 tsp salt

• 3/4 pound (3 sticks) salted butter, cut into pieces, room temp

• 4 tsp vanilla extract

Ingredients - Glaze

• 12 oz semisweet chocolate chips

• 2 tsp vegetable shortening

Instructions

1. In a food processor, pulse the flour, sugar and salt to lend. Scatter the butter over the flour mixture. Add the vanilla. Pulse to form small clumps of dough.

2. Pour onto work surface and gather dough. Divide in half. Form each piece into a log and use a sharp knife to cut 3/4” thick cookies.

3. Transfer cookies to parchment paper lined cookie sheets and refrigerate at least 30 minutes.

4. Bake 18-20 minutes in preheated oven at 325.

5. To make the glaze: In a medium microwave-safe bowl combine chocolate chips and shortening. Melt in microwave at 20 second increments on 50% power until melted and smooth.

6. Dip one half of each cookie into the melted chocolate, let excess drip off and place on a wire rack. Let stand until chocolate is set, at least 1 hour.

Low Carb Brownie Cheesecake Squares

October 24th marked Amelia’s first diabetes anniversary, or “Diaversary” as we have called it. It was a busy day. On Wednesdays Amelia has a tennis lesson at 6pm. Usually this is when we eat dinner so I have to cook something quick that we can eat before we go. I invited her best friend over, who she takes the lesson with her, to come over after for dessert. I wanted to pick a low carb recipe and I found this one for Brownie Cheesecake Squares on Low Carb Yum.

The cheesecake part of these was delicious. So yum. The brownie part tasted dense and really was more like a crust than a brownie. You wouldn’t be able to eat the brownie part by itself. It definitely needed the flavor of the cream cheese layer to counteract the dark chocolate bitter taste of the brownie. I also think they are best enjoyed cut up in little bite size pieces.

Low Carb Brownie Cheesecake Squares by Low Carb Yum

Ingredients

Flourless Brownies

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter

• 3.5 ounces dark chocolate

• 3 tablespoons low carb sweetener

• 3 large eggs

• 1/4 cup cocoa powder

Cheesecake Topping

• 16 ounces cream cheese softened

• 1 cup heavy cream

• 1/2 cup low carb sweetener or less to taste

• 3 teaspoons vanilla extract

• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 350°F and spray a 8x8-inch baking dish with non-stick cooking spray.

2. In a medium saucepan over medium-low heat, melt the chocolate and butter.

3. Pour the melted chocolate mixture into a mixing bowl and combine it with the stevia and cocoa powder.

4. Slowly whisk in the eggs one at a time and then transfer the brownies from the bowl to the pan to bake for 15-20 minutes. Once cooked, set the brownies aside to cool.

5. Cheesecake Topping - In a large mixing bowl, combine the cream cheese, stevia, vanilla extract, and ground cinnamon.

6. Blend the mixture until it is smooth and creamy.

7. In a separate bowl, use a hand mixer to whip the heavy cream until stiff peaks form.

8. Slowly fold together the cream cheese and whipped cream until all the ingredients are well-blended.

9. Pour the cheesecake topping over the cooled brownies and place the dessert in your fridge for 4 hours to set.

Calories: 216 | Fat: 20g | Carbs: 4g | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Protein: 3g

Sunday Morning Pumpkin Muffins

I like pumpkin spice things and I’m not ashamed to say it. There’s something about Sunday morning that makes you want to eat things like donuts, muffins, pancakes and waffles, am I right? I recently heard about this Simple Mills brand from someone on Instagram and the next day at Publix I spotted this muffin mix.

This is lower carb than your typical muffin mix coming in at about 14g per muffin versus 28g per muffin! We try to find treats that feel like comfort food but are lower carb than the real thing. It’s pretty cool that this Simple Mills mix only has natural ingredients. The full list of ingredients is almond flour, organic coconut sugar, pumpkin, arrowroot, organic coconut flour, organic spices, baking soda and sea salt, that’s it!

And most importantly, they tasted delish too. Type 1 Diabetic approved by Amelia! :) Click here to purchase Simple Mills Pumpkin Bread & Muffin Mix online!

Yummy Cucumber Dill Salad

I love this yummy cucumber dill salad from Wholesome Yum! I actually get a lot of recipes from this awesome site. They’re all low carb, gluten free and use 10 ingredients or less! I went to a salad luncheon today and had to bring a salad to share so I chose this cucumber dill salad. It was light, refreshing and delish. I love dill but I feel like it’s one of those spices you either love or you hate, like cilantro (which I love too).

I doubled the recipe since we were serving a large crowd, but I only used one red onion and I felt like it was plenty. The ingredients (minus the cucumber and onion) mixed together would actually make a really amazing dressing for a lettuce salad too, yum! I peeled the cucumbers because it just felt like the right thing to do, but it’s not necessary. I might try it next time with mini cucumbers. I think this yummy cucumber dill salad would be a great addition to a summer cook-out too.

BEST CREAMY CUCUMBER SALAD RECIPE WITH SOUR CREAM AND DILL by Wholesome Yum

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup Sour cream

• 2 tbsp Fresh dill (chopped)

• 1 tbsp Olive oil

• 1 tbsp Lemon juice

• 1/2 tsp Garlic powder

• 1/2 tsp Sea salt

• 1/4 tsp Black pepper

• 6 cups Cucumber (chopped)

• 1 small Red onion (thinly sliced)

Instructions

1. In a large bowl, whisk together the sour cream, dill, olive oil, lemon juice, and garlic powder. Season with sea salt and black pepper to taste.

2. Stir in the chopped cucumbers and red onions.

Calories: 86 | Fat: 6g | Total Carbs: 7g | Net Carbs: 6g | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 3g | Protein: 2g

Delish Broccoli Cheddar Soup

I’ve been really good about cooking since school started. And by really good I mean I actually cook four nights a week. Wednesdays are tough because Amelia has a tennis lesson at 6pm which is usually when we eat dinner. If we wait to eat until after, it’s 7:30 and that just doesn’t work for her blood sugar. She needs a full two hours for the insulin to bring her back down to normal before she eats her 10 carb bedtime snack. So I have been trying to make crock pot meals or things that are easy to eat quickly before tennis. I found the recipe for this delish broccoli cheddar soup on Averie Cooks who claims this soup is better than Panera’s! I have to admit, it was delish and both the kids ate it up!

So I know it’s not weird, but it feels weird to not eat any meat or protein with a meal, so at the last minute I rolled up some salami with cream cheese. They ended up being a nice little side to the broccoli cheddar soup! I used a bag of frozen broccoli that was already cooked so I didn’t have to simmer the soup as long as the recipe says below.

The Best Broccoli Cheese Soup

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon + 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided

• 1 small/medium sweet yellow onion, diced small

• 1 clove garlic, peeled and minced finely

• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour

• 2 cups low-sodium vegetable stock (chicken stock may be substituted)

• 2 cups fat-free half-and-half (regular half-and-half may be substituted; whole milk or 2% milk will work but soup won’t be as creamy)

• 2 to 3 cups broccoli florets, diced into bite-size pieces + 1 cups stems, optional (I used 3 cups florets and 1 cup stems as not to waste them)

• 2 large carrots, trimmed, peeled, and sliced into very thin rounds, about 1/16th-inch

• 3/4 teaspoon salt, or to taste

• 3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or to taste

• 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika or regular paprika, optional and to taste

• 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard powder, optional and to taste

• pinch cayenne pepper, optional and to taste (doesn’t make soup spicy and serves to enhance flavor)

• 8 ounces grated high quality extra-sharp cheddar cheese, with a small amount reserved for garnishing bowls

Directions

1. In a small saucepan, add 1 tablespoon butter, the diced onion, and sauté   over medium heat until the onion is translucent and barely browned, about 4 minutes. Stir intermittently.

2. Add the garlic and cook about 30 seconds, stirring constantly so it doesn’t burn. Remove from heat and set pan aside.

3. In a large heavy-bottom pot add 4 tablespoons butter, flour, and cook over medium heat for about 3 to 5 minutes, whisking constantly, until flour is thickened. You are making a roux and it’s very important the mixture is thick or soup will never thicken properly later.

4. Slowly add the vegetable stock, whisking constantly.

5. Slowly add the half-and-half, whisking constantly.

6. Allow mixture to simmer over low heat for about 15 to 20 minutes, or until it has reduced and thickened some. Whisk intermittently to re-incorporate the ‘skin’ that inevitably forms, this is normal.

7. While mixture is simmering, chop the broccoli and carrots. After simmering 15 to 20 minutes, add the broccoli, carrots, and the onion and garlic you previously set aside.

8. Add the salt, pepper, optional paprika, optional dry mustard powder, and optional cayenne. If you don’t have these seasonings on hand, it’s okay, but they do add subtle depth of flavor. Stir to combine.

9. Allow soup to simmer over low heat for about 20 to 25 minutes, or until it has reduced and thickened some. Whisk intermittently to re-incorporate the ‘skin’ that inevitably forms, this is normal.

10. While soup simmers, grate the cheese. After simmering about 20 to 25 minutes, add most of the cheese, reserving a small amount for garnishing bowls. Stir in the cheese until melted and incorporated fully, less than 1 minute.

11. Transfer soup to bowls, garnish with reserved cheese, and serve immediately. Soup will keep airtight for 5 to 7 days in the fridge. Reheat gently in the microwave.

Calories: 567 | Fat: 46g | Total Carbs: 21g | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 9g | Protein: 19g